Comments on: Washington Wizards/Groupon Alliance: Your Basic Internet Bargain, or Evidence of the Death of Season Tickets? http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/10/19/washington-wizardsgroupon-alliance-your-basic-internet-bargain-or-evidence-of-the-death-of-season-tickets/ 68.3 Square Miles of D.C. News and Opinion Fri, 24 May 2013 02:39:45 -0400 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 By: Ted is an investor in Groupon http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/10/19/washington-wizardsgroupon-alliance-your-basic-internet-bargain-or-evidence-of-the-death-of-season-tickets/comment-page-1/#comment-1029657 Ted is an investor in Groupon Thu, 27 Jan 2011 18:31:52 +0000 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/?p=63443#comment-1029657 To repeat, Ted Leonsis is an investor in Groupon. It's not a sign of desperation, it's a partnership. To repeat, Ted Leonsis is an investor in Groupon. It's not a sign of desperation, it's a partnership.

]]> By: Wiley http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/10/19/washington-wizardsgroupon-alliance-your-basic-internet-bargain-or-evidence-of-the-death-of-season-tickets/comment-page-1/#comment-939344 Wiley Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:48:25 +0000 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/?p=63443#comment-939344 Huh? The author of this article must be smoking something. The reason the Caps fill the building every night is because of the demand for season tickets. That isn't about to change anytime soon. Huh? The author of this article must be smoking something. The reason the Caps fill the building every night is because of the demand for season tickets. That isn't about to change anytime soon.

]]> By: Kev29 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/10/19/washington-wizardsgroupon-alliance-your-basic-internet-bargain-or-evidence-of-the-death-of-season-tickets/comment-page-1/#comment-939259 Kev29 Wed, 20 Oct 2010 15:18:32 +0000 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/?p=63443#comment-939259 I'm just pissed I didn't see this Groupon the day it was active. $37 lower level (corner) tickets counts as a good deal in my book. I'd go to more Wizards game if I could sit in the lower level for under $40. I'm just pissed I didn't see this Groupon the day it was active. $37 lower level (corner) tickets counts as a good deal in my book. I'd go to more Wizards game if I could sit in the lower level for under $40.

]]> By: Hossein http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/10/19/washington-wizardsgroupon-alliance-your-basic-internet-bargain-or-evidence-of-the-death-of-season-tickets/comment-page-1/#comment-939249 Hossein Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:41:56 +0000 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/?p=63443#comment-939249 I can't disagree with this article more. As with anything there will be ebb and flow in season ticket holders but the reality is there will always be a small (or large) group of hardcore fans that want to have the cost savings and other benefits that come along with these plans. As teams do better the core will grow, as teams regress the fan base will too. Mr. Tuchman must be completely out of touch with natural human buying and spending habits. I can't disagree with this article more.

As with anything there will be ebb and flow in season ticket holders but the reality is there will always be a small (or large) group of hardcore fans that want to have the cost savings and other benefits that come along with these plans.

As teams do better the core will grow, as teams regress the fan base will too.

Mr. Tuchman must be completely out of touch with natural human buying and spending habits.

]]> By: Falls Church http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/10/19/washington-wizardsgroupon-alliance-your-basic-internet-bargain-or-evidence-of-the-death-of-season-tickets/comment-page-1/#comment-938706 Falls Church Tue, 19 Oct 2010 20:06:50 +0000 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/?p=63443#comment-938706 Here's the reason teams will always offer some form of season ticket plans: because having them in hand allows the team to directly control its ticket sales during times when the team is prospering. All the team needs to do in order to maintain season tickets as a viable option - even at the most miniscule level - is to offer some specific benefits to season ticket holders that are not available to any old buyer. For example, playoff tickets - for which season ticket holders are generally offered first dibs. This will be enough to entice some people to buy season tickets every year, even before the Groupon tickets go on the market. Guaranteed tickets for desirable opponents is another benefit for season ticket holders. If you want to be absolutely certain you can go to those games and sit in the great seat you want, you'll buy a season ticket - even though as a result you'll end up with tickets to other games you might not necessarily want to go to. Maybe in off years there won't be a large market for that, but there will always be SOME market for it. By maintaining season tickets as an option, the team preserves its ability to tap into that part of the market when the team gets good and demand for tickets goes up. The time may come when fans want to buy up your entire season even before the schedule is announced (e.g. Red Sox, Phillies). Why would you as a team want to deny yourself the option of maximizing your profits from that? So the season ticket will not ever go away. What WILL go away are ticket resellers buying up a team's season tickets in hopes of turning a profit for themselves, and there's nothing wrong with that happening. Professional ticket resellers are all just scum anyway. Who cares if they get screwed? (For a local example, consider the 2005/2006 Nationals. Their season ticket base dropped by 5,000 from 2005 to 2006. Those were not disaffected fans dropping their season tickets. Those were speculators who had jumped on season tickets for the new team expecting the same kind of mania as existed for the Orioles of the early Camden Yards era. When that didn't occur, they dropped their season-tickets-as-a-gold-mine mentality like a hot potato.) Here's the reason teams will always offer some form of season ticket plans: because having them in hand allows the team to directly control its ticket sales during times when the team is prospering. All the team needs to do in order to maintain season tickets as a viable option - even at the most miniscule level - is to offer some specific benefits to season ticket holders that are not available to any old buyer. For example, playoff tickets - for which season ticket holders are generally offered first dibs. This will be enough to entice some people to buy season tickets every year, even before the Groupon tickets go on the market. Guaranteed tickets for desirable opponents is another benefit for season ticket holders. If you want to be absolutely certain you can go to those games and sit in the great seat you want, you'll buy a season ticket - even though as a result you'll end up with tickets to other games you might not necessarily want to go to. Maybe in off years there won't be a large market for that, but there will always be SOME market for it. By maintaining season tickets as an option, the team preserves its ability to tap into that part of the market when the team gets good and demand for tickets goes up. The time may come when fans want to buy up your entire season even before the schedule is announced (e.g. Red Sox, Phillies). Why would you as a team want to deny yourself the option of maximizing your profits from that?

So the season ticket will not ever go away. What WILL go away are ticket resellers buying up a team's season tickets in hopes of turning a profit for themselves, and there's nothing wrong with that happening. Professional ticket resellers are all just scum anyway. Who cares if they get screwed? (For a local example, consider the 2005/2006 Nationals. Their season ticket base dropped by 5,000 from 2005 to 2006. Those were not disaffected fans dropping their season tickets. Those were speculators who had jumped on season tickets for the new team expecting the same kind of mania as existed for the Orioles of the early Camden Yards era. When that didn't occur, they dropped their season-tickets-as-a-gold-mine mentality like a hot potato.)

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